Is CVE-2026-42402 actively exploited?

No active exploitation of CVE-2026-42402 has been confirmed so far. Continue monitoring, as exploit status can change.

Can CVE-2026-42402 be exploited remotely?

Yes. CVE-2026-42402 is exploitable remotely over the network (CVSS attack vector: Network).

What is the CVSS score of CVE-2026-42402?

CVE-2026-42402 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (HIGH).

HOME VULNERABILITIESCVE-2026-42402

HIGH

CVE-2026-42402

CWE-400Published: May 1, 2026· Updated: May 1, 2026

7.5

CVSS v3.1

EPSS:0.03%probability of exploitation in 30 daysPercentile:8.4th

Official Description

Apache Neethi is vulnerable to a Denial of Service attack through algorithmic complexity in policy normalization. Specially crafted WS-Policy documents can trigger an exponential Cartesian cross-product expansion during the normalization process, causing unbounded memory allocation that exhausts the JVM heap. This occurs when the normalization process generates an excessive number of policy alternatives without bounds, leading to runtime memory exhaustion.

Users should upgrade to 3.2.2 which limits the maximum number of normalized policy alternatives.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2026-42402 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.

The vulnerability requires no privileges and no user interaction, making it a prime target for automated exploitation campaigns and worm-like propagation.

A successful exploit results in availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 7.5.